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Apply for Financial Aid

If you can’t afford to pay for a Certificate, you can apply for Financial Aid through the link on the course home page. You can also view most course materials for free using the audit mode.

Learners with Financial Aid in a course will be able to access all of the course content and complete all work required to earn a Course Certificate. Financial Aid only applies to the course that the Financial Aid application was approved for.

Most courses offer Financial Aid, but Financial Aid may not be available for certain courses.

To receive Coursera Financial Aid, you'll need to:

Fill out an application that includes information about your educational background, career goals, and financial circumstances

Apply for Financial Aid

You can only apply for Financial Aid using our website on a computer - you can't apply for Financial Aid using our mobile app.

To apply for Financial Aid:

Using a computer, open the course home page for the course you want to apply for Financial Aid in.

Next to the information about Financial Aid, click Learn more and apply.

Fill out and submit your Financial Aid application.

Wait for your application to be reviewed. While you wait for your application to be reviewed, you can begin the course immediately in audit mode or free mode. The review process may take up to 15 days.

When your application is reviewed, you'll get an email letting you know whether it's been approved or denied. You can also check your Updates page to see the status of your Financial Aid application.

After you submit your Financial Aid application, it will take up to two weeks to review your application. If you apply for Financial Aid for a degree course, you must submit your application at least 15 days in advance so you can access your degree course on time. Unfortunately, Coursera is unable to provide exceptions or rush individual applications.

You can see course materials for free while you are waiting for your application to be approved by using the audit mode.

Approved Financial Aid applications

If your Financial Aid application is approved, you'll get an email letting you know, and you'll be automatically enrolled in the course. Courses run on a sessions schedule so you don't need to worry about falling behind. However, most degree courses have hard assignment deadlines, so make sure to submit your Financial Aid application at least 15 days in advance so you won’t fall too far behind.

If you do not complete the course within 180 days, you may submit another Financial Aid application.

Denied Financial Aid applications

If your Financial Aid application is denied, you’ll get an email letting you know. That email will explain why your application was denied, so you can fix the problem and apply again.

Financial Aid and Free Trials

Your financial aid application will be cancelled if you start a free trial while it is being reviewed.

If you've already started a free trial and still want your financial aid application to be reviewed for approval, you should cancel your subscription and re-apply.

Financial Aid for Specializations

When you apply for financial aid for a Specialization, you will get Financial Aid only for the first course. You will need to submit separate applications for each new course as you go through the Specialization.

To apply for Financial Aid for courses in a Specialization, follow the instructions above.